vic viper

Its not all in the speakers, remember that the Burmester uses a powerful external amp as well.

c200amgline

I didn't know that but okay. IMO it's not worth a 5+ month wait and would rather enjoy the car now.

alsyli

I have the standard system. I turn the treble to "+10" and I think I leave the bass on "0." Still very muddled. I think I might've fiddled once w/ turning the bass to "-10" but don't think it made much of a difference. =(

Glyn M Ruck

+1^ and it outputs real watts unlike BS peak power that some others claim.

scottw

Good decision. If it is not that important, then you should not get it. The regular system is very good. But Baumester is better. I always test car systems with a song I have in my iPhone. Still Loving You, Scorpions with the Berlin Philharmonic. It has all sorts of tones, sounds, notes, etc to get a good sense of the system.

For what it is worth, I have listened to the 3D system available in the S-Class and it does not seem worth the extra $

c200amgline

Thank you for supporting my decision. If it was for less than $3k or came with other features then I may have chose Burmester but for now it's a huge waste of money on just speakers. For that money I could get an upgrade to the C250 with same specs. Whatever music system will be in the car I'll still be enjoying it and that's most important to me.

jbbeauso

I test drove a c400 this week with the Burmester and I wasn't impressed....It was just OK! I had to boost the gain on the bass to smooth out the frequency response and with the position of the low frequency drivers under the steering column area, it felt strange with the air from the bass drivers hitting my legs the way they did, even though I didn't turn it up that loud at all..... Its about that same or worse than the bose system that was in my old mazda which I would have rated as good at best. Just my opinion.......

Glyn M Ruck

I've had some very good recordings in the S Class and it's very, very good for car sound that can never match home sound. Remember it's crap in = crap out.

If you want ghetto blaster sound a Burmester system is not the way to go. If you want accurate sound it's pretty darn good.

Burmester is a high end audio company. Any audiophile will tell you that you get diminished returns for your money as sound quality increases. It is up to you as to whether you are prepared to pay for, at times, small increases in accuracy.

Bose is, as an example, a lifestyle company. They do not produce anything that approaches high end audio.

The kind of buyer that specifies the Burmester 3D system in the S Class likely has a civilised system at home. Or maybe too much money. Take your pick.

n3cr1d

I tested standard audio system, and for me its ok. I believe is better than w204. Frontbass bass tecnology is standard w205.

Can anyone confirm how many speakers have in normal system??
And anyone is with me? w205 basic audio > w204 basic audio??

5634MG

Standard W205 system: 4 mids and 1 frontbass sub (driver footwell)

Leslielp

I test drove a C300 with standard Audio 20 setup and a C400 with Burmester.


Obviously the Burmester had the better sound imaging and clarity but the bass was definitely coming from below the driver legs, or at least that what it sounded like to me. I was listening to a Sirius Satellite radio channel.


The Standard audio setup was not as bad as some say but its not as good as the standard setup in my current 2012 C. I did not have the option of Satellite radio but did listen to HD FM which sounded fine for the most part. It did not have the very high or lows of the Burmester and the black grills are not the best colour for any interior other than black imho.


I am sure there will be aftermarket speakers and covers that will make up for the appearance shortfall and perhaps improve the sound quality.

JT25

Yeah my thoughts too... Perhaps pocket the $3k and upgrade aftermarket for less if you arent happy with the standard? I couldn't wait that long.

c200amgline

Exactly what I'm planning on doing. I couldn't care less about the appearance but rather the sound quality. Most cars have speakers with black grilles so it's alright for me.

c200amgline

I will definitely do that. I think I can get amazing quality speakers for half the price or a bit more than that and spend the remaining on VKOOL tint. 5 months is indeed long, plus my salesman informed me that there will be a 5% increase to the already high price in 2015 and some features will be removed.

vic viper

There is no way that any aftermaket speakers would sound anywhere near the Burmester system.

djejglk

correct. also, just speakers alone won't cut it IMO. you would need an ENTIRE system (speakers, amps, crossovers, overall eq etc.) to do it right.

upgraded speakers alone could help, but...

the burmester, heck even the h/k in the 204 has been specifically tuned for the "cabinet", or the car itself in this case. that's why they sound so good. there's some deep engineering going on there, beyond just the raw components.

point being you'd end up spending a grand or more to do a worthy upgrade.

abstractls

I don't even know here to begin on how incorrect this statement is. Now if you mean just speakers alone ok I will give you that but Focals and a proper class D amp I bet I could get it better sounding then the burmester, in fact my current car sounds better than the Burmester, but it's not just speakers of course.

vic viper

So let me get this straight, you think that you personally can outperform a soundsystem that has been designed by Burmester and Daimler sound engineers with thousands of man hours spent on developing a system that is customized to the vehicle itself.


Think again.

abstractls

Without a doubt. I use to do it for a living. Don't get too caught up on the thousands of man owners they say. It's not as extreme as you think. Remember they also want to make it affordable. Alot of the hours is about integration. My current car runs Focals, class D amps as well as microphones that tune the car to the acoustics of the vehicle as well as time delays down to the drivers ear. The Burmester sounded very good and one of the best stock systems I have heard in a while, but still isnt as good as many many after market systems I have heard. I'm not just giving an opinion, I heard the system, its good, but you can easily design better. What sets the Burmester apart is its integration into the car, after market wont look like that does. The bass sounded good but it was muddy and directional. At no point did I feel deep vibrations down to my seat. The highs were good, but the time delay is designed to fill the car not please the driver.

abstractls

The top end system in the S class however would be hard to out do, that one I will give you. I heard it.

vic viper

Still not convinced, sure you can improve the standard system using aftermarket parts, but at what cost?


Focal speakers and digital amps are very expensive, not to mention the install time and cost.
You have the problem of getting a clean low pass signal from the HU, an analog high/low pass adapter wont cut it.
You also need to run signal cables without risk of interference, find good power and ground points, find a proper remote source and so on.


IMO it isnt worth it, not even close

abstractls

The statement was no way you can get aftermarket speakers to sound better then a Burmester, it's a false statement. For the costs of the system I think its worth it, but yes you can definitely get better. My system costs was $4500 but yes I did the work myself so that system would have cost someone $6500 installed

Glyn M Ruck

The Burmester system will take a lot of beating. Focal makes good speakers but Class D Amps all suck. The cheapest possible way of switching a transistor. The acoustics of a car are awful. Without extremely sophisticated measuring equipment & synergistic design you are not going to better the Burmester sound.

abstractls

All Class D Amps Suck? LOL. Ok you are out of the argument. The acoustics of a car are terrible, hence having expensive mics and DSP control to control those acoustics. It's far more attainable then it used to be. Come on over to America sit in my current after market setup then listen to the Burmester and tell me its better. No chance. The Burmester is great, but just like people who think they are getting Bose or HK etc, you aren't getting the true story. With Bose heck they basically just lease the name. Burmester was involved correct, and if you think Burmester is building the best they can for $3k (That our cost not Burmester's cost) you have blinders on. I've heard the system, I had another audiophile in the car with me, they agreed. Very good system, one of the best I've heard in a stock or premium system, but still cant touch a properly design aftermarket. I'm looking forward to the car but without a doubt i'm downgrading on sound. But I don't want to tear the car apart. I prefer the stock look and replacing a headunit is impossible on a car like that. I have Burn Brae converters on my ipod conection, I highly doubt the Burmester bypasses the DAC on the ipod with their own.

abstractls

Oh BTW Burmester uses Class D Amps in many of the cars and produces a very nice home model as well (Their are things called analog controlled Class Ds which is what they use and I use)